Associations between lifetime classic psychedelic use and markers of physical health.

Otto Simonsson,James D Sexton,Peter S Hendricks

doi:10.1177/0269881121996863

Abstract

Background:In recent years, there has been significant research on the mental health effects of classic psychedelic use, but there is very little evidence on how classic psychedelics might influence physical health.Aims:The purpose of the present study was to investigate the associations between lifetime classic psychedelic use and markers of physical health.Methods:Using data from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (2015-2018) with 171,766 (unweighted) adults aged 18 or above in the United States, the current study examined the associations between lifetime classic psychedelic use and three markers of physical health (self-reported overall health, body mass index, and heart condition and/or cancer in the past 12 months) while controlling for a range of covariates.Results:Respondents who reported having tried a classic psychedelic at least once in their lifetime had significantly higher odds of greater self-reported overall health and significantly lower odds of being overweight or obese versus having a normal weight. The association between lifetime classic psychedelic use and having a heart condition and/or cancer in the past 12 months approached conventional levels of significance, with lower odds of having a heart condition and/or cancer in the past 12 months for respondents who had tried a classic psychedelic at least once.Conclusion:The results of the present study suggest that classic psychedelics may be beneficial to physical health. Future research should investigate the causal effects of classic psychedelics on physical health and evaluate possible mechanisms.

Highlights

The effects of psychedelic drug use on human cognition and behaviour have recently received significant scientific attention (Rucker et al, 2018; Sessa, 2018)
As shown in the table, approximately 14% of the sample reported lifetime classic psychedelic use, which suggests that almost 34 million American adults have used a classic psychedelic at least once in their lifetime, based on the population estimates from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH)
As illustrated in the table, lifetime classic psychedelic use was associated with significantly higher odds of greater self-reported overall health

Summary

Introduction

The effects of psychedelic drug use on human cognition and behaviour have recently received significant scientific attention (Rucker et al, 2018; Sessa, 2018). The three main classes of classic psychedelics (tryptamines, lysergamides and phenethylamines) are distinguished by unique chemical structures and neurochemical mechanisms (Szabo, 2015). Most notably, they include N,Ndimethyltryptamine (DMT), the DMT-containing admixture ayahuasca, psilocybin, lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), mescaline, and the mescaline-containing cacti peyote and San Pedro (Sexton et al, 2019a). The patients were interviewed post-treatment and many of them reported significant improvements in health behaviour (Watts et al, 2017), which suggests that classic psychedelic use might induce behavioural changes favourable to physical health. Aims: The purpose of the present study was to investigate the associations between lifetime classic psychedelic use and markers of physical health. Future research should investigate the causal effects of classic psychedelics on physical health and evaluate possible mechanisms

Objectives

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion